Best of Medical Blogs - weekly review and blog carnival

The “Best of Medical Blogs - weekly review and blog carnival” is a weekly summary of the best posts from medical blogs. Please email your suggestions for inclusion to clinicalcases@gmail.com. Best of Medical Blogs (BMB) is published every Tuesday, just like the old Grand Rounds.

The #FOAMed revolution (Free Open Access Medical education)

From Mike Cadogan: "The net effect of #FOAM has taken me quite by surprise. Despite a complete lack of evidence, peer review, mission statements OR Big Pharma backing – the FOAMed revolution continues to infiltrate the psyche of the everyday healthcare professional. The ability to intelligently review, discuss and develop hypotheses, guidelines and issues; the sense of community; the sense of rebellious augmented learning and the joy of independence is rife…and contagious.

There are now an amazing 180 emergency medicine and critical care blogs. Bloggers write from 21 different countries. GMEP – ‘the Facebook of Medicine’ has just welcomed it’s 800th new member, 2 weeks after launch." http://buff.ly/12lzWzs

To become a great diagnostician – unleash your inner Columbo

"Lt. Columbo: You have to forgive me, it's not me, it's my mind, it's very slow, and I have to pin everything down" -- "Obsess over the details. Make the correct diagnosis as correct diagnoses make treatment success more likely." http://buff.ly/UwIoKH

Life as a Healthcare CIO: Naming the animals is one of the great pleasures of life on the farm. Every day when I'm moving hay, filling water, and shoveling manure, I can address everyone by name, wishing them good morning or offering words of encouragement. http://buff.ly/UYQcSE

Burnout is rampant among doctors: high rates of divorce, substance abuse, highest suicide rate of any profession. What to do? http://buff.ly/ZfpoTH

Why depression has made me a better doctor - by Dr. Ronan Kavanagh http://bit.ly/VPtlbZ

What does renal denervation mean for the future? The nephrologist Joel Topf from the blog Precious Bodily Fluids summarizes the findings: http://bit.ly/Vhciz5

10 Tips For Med Students Going Into Emergency Medicine - Adventures in Emergency Medicine http://buff.ly/12khQxK

Dr. Wes: My Grand, Sweeping Cardiovascular Predictions for 2013 http://bit.ly/VCfi8x

Mindfulness Meditation: Helping Doctors in Training Find Calm http://buff.ly/12qQfv1

Age-related macular degeneration - 2012 Lancet review

From the The Lancet:

Age-related macular degeneration is a major cause of blindness worldwide. With ageing populations in many countries, more than 20% might have the disorder.

Advanced age-related macular degeneration is associated with progressive visual impairment. It includes two subtypes:

- neovascular age-related macular degeneration (wet)
- geographic atrophy (late dry) macular degeneration

What are the risk factors for macular degeneration?

Major risk factors include:

- cigarette smoking
- nutritional factors
- cardiovascular diseases
- genetic markers, including genes regulating complement, lipid, angiogenic, and extracellular matrix pathways

How to diagnose macular degeneration?

Accurate diagnosis combines clinical examination and investigations including:

- retinal photography
- angiography
- optical coherence tomography

What is the treatment for macular degeneration?

Dietary anti-oxidant supplementation slows progression of the disease. Taking lutein 10 mg po daily may help (see the DW video below).

Treatment for neovascular age-related (wet) macular degeneration includes intraocular injections of anti-VEGF agents. The two commonly used anti-VEGF therapies, ranibizumab and bevacizumab, have similar efficacy.

Future treatments include inhibition of other angiogenic factors, and regenerative and topical therapies.



Saving Eyesight | In Good Shape - DW Interview. Dr. Manfred Tetz talks about both sudden and creeping loss of vision. The eye specialist reviews the warning signs for a retinal detachment or a retinal vein occlusion and what can be done about them.

References:

Age-related macular degeneration. The Lancet, Volume 379, Issue 9827, Pages 1728 - 1738, 5 May 2012.
Image source: Wikimedia Commons.

Vaccination: A Key Piece of the Puzzle (CDC videos)

Vaccination: A Key Piece of the Puzzle. Nothing protects babies better from more than 14 serious diseases by age 2.



Babies are on the move-- visiting grocery stores, playgrounds and other places with their parents and caregivers. As they come into contact with others, babies can be exposed to serious diseases, like measles and whooping cough:



The Immunization Baby Book: Flipping through this baby book, you can learn what vaccines babies need, when they're needed, and why it's so important to follow CDC's recommended immunization schedule.



For more information about vaccines, visit http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/parents

Healthcare social media #HCSM - top articles

Here are my suggestions for some of the top articles related to healthcare social media (#HCSM) for the past 2-3 weeks:

Blogging about chronic pain and illness may decrease a sense of isolation http://buff.ly/QWMA0D

UK official sparks anger by advising users to give fake details to social media websites to protect their security http://buff.ly/R1hfdp

Social Media for Scientists: A lecture http://buff.ly/RMGFNt

Older patients join crowd consulting "Dr. Internet" http://buff.ly/PNeD7Y

Social media is a great way to connect with others at scientific meeting and share your personal experiences http://buff.ly/Sb2h8S

How doctors on social media are changing the face of medicine - Twitter takes the debate worldwide http://buff.ly/PSRmBv

Social Media in Healthcare: 5 Best Practice Examples http://buff.ly/RMJzSe

Crowdsourcing Gout (with tweets) - RonanTKavanagh: This is why I love learning on Twitter. New drug, limited experience and 4 rheumatologists chipping in: http://buff.ly/RMK7HS

The very idea of blogs as a separate-and-distinct entity has pretty much gone away. But that’s a good thing. http://buff.ly/RMLTZE

The Best Learning Management Systems http://bit.ly/Rq5PBS

The 7 Best Places For Online Education http://bit.ly/SPsV4y

Social media topics during the 2013 AAAAI Annual Meeting (February 22 - 26): http://buff.ly/PQBEqz

Online Tools for Academics at Conferences http://buff.ly/SPVods

Medicine, morality and health care social media - by the director of Mayo Clinic #HCSM center http://buff.ly/SRQqdE

The articles were selected from my Twitter and Google Reader streams. Please feel free to send suggestions for articles to clinicalcases@gmail.com and you will receive an acknowledgement in the next edition of this publication.

This year, pick just ONE resolution that will make you happier

From Christine Carter, Ph.D. who blogs at Raising Happiness:

"This year, pick just one resolution that research shows will make you happier:

1. Spend more time with friends

2. Everyday, find a way to give something to somebody. My favorite happiness booster is to give thanks

3. Get more sleep and exercise"

Here is a simple book on the topic that I like:



References:

3 New Year’s Resolutions that Will Make You Happier | Greater Good